Review: An Evening with the Divine Mr. M(ozart) at Lincoln Center

THE ILLUMINATED HEART, the opening program for this year's Mostly Mozart Festival--the 50th--at David Geffen Hall, may not have offered any new insights into the mind of the genius composer or uncovered any long-lost masterpiece not heard in 200 years. On the other hand, it was filled with wonderful music, inspired singing and total bliss for the audience, in a program that flew by, all in the name of Mozart.

Not a bad night's work.

This was no park-and-bark affair--with singers wending their way through the orchestra, back and forth, for each selection--but an evening cleverly conceived and designed, and directed, by Netia Jones (with program consultant Peter Carwell and lighting by Andrew Hill) that also seemed to improve some of the usual indignities of the hall's acoustics. For once, the orchestra, which gave a light-footed performance under music director Louis Langree, was not center stage, but in an improvised pit that replaced the first several rows of orchestra seating, justifiably putting the spotlight on the singers as they went through their paces. Each aria had its own setting, transformed seamlessly through the use of slides, in the white box that took over the hall's stage, with mostly 18th century-inspired costumes.

But this was a night for singing, and the remarkable group assembled included both familiar and unfamiliar faces (and voices) from the opera house across the plaza and a few newcomers to New York.

Met mainstays baritone Peter Mattei, tenor Matthew Polenzani and soprano Christine Goerke were all in fine form. Mattei has proven a wonderful Count in the full version of LE NOZZE DI FIGARO and he did so again, with his rich baritone and lively stage presence elevating "Vedro metr'io sospiro," while Polenzani brought his usual elegance and dignity to the stuffed shirt Don Ottavio's "Dalla sua pace" from DON GIOVANNI (a role he's doing in the complete opera at the Met this season).

Goerke, on her way to heavier roles in Wagner and Strauss, showed that she's still a Mozartian at heart in a riveting rendition of Elettra's aria, "O smania! O furie" from IDOMENEO. Baritone Christopher Maltman, also a Met regular, had the opportunity to show his range in Mozart, first with Papageno's charming "Der vogelfanger bin ich ja" from DIE ZAUBERFLOTE then with Don Giovanni's manic "Champagne Aria," "Fin ch'han dal vino," which he tossed off with aplomb.

The concert presented three excerpts from COSI FAN TUTTE that allowed us to enjoy the music without getting too caught up in the opera's obnoxious storyline. In both, soprano Ana Maria Martinez was Fiordiligi and the appealing mezzo Daniela Mack was Dorabella (in her NY debut) and they played off each other beautifully in "Ah, guarda, sorella" and "Soave sia il vento" (where they were joined by Mattei). Martinez, who caused quite a stir with her Cio-Cio San in MADAMA BUTTERFLY at the Met this season, proved she's no slouch as Mozart either, with the slight acid in her voice and superlative acting making her presence so distinctive. This was particularly true in "Mi tradi," Elvira's great aria from DON GIOVANNI, in which her breath control was astounding.

Another of the evening's "finds" was mezzo Marianne Crebassa, who was showcased in a pair of arias from LA CLEMENZA DI TITO and blew the roof off with her thrilling, velvety singing in "Parto, parto," with great partnering from clarinetist Jon Manasse. (She was also a fine Cherubino in the evenings' conclusion, the Act IV finale of NOZZE, in case the Met wants to give Isabel Leonard a night off.)

Soprano Nadine Sierra--who partnered nicely with Crebassa in Tito's "Ah perdona al primo affecto" among other roles in the concert--was assigned the concert's true rarity, "Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben," from Mozart's first attempt at opera, ZAIDE, giving it a luxurious, heartfelt rendition. Soprano Kiera Duffy--who stars in the new Mazzola-Vavrek opera, BREAKING THE WAVES in Philadelphia in September--was a lively presence as Despina (and a Despina-like presence elsewhere), though she didn't have a chance to show off vocally.

In all, it was a grand way to kick of Mostly Mozart's 50th anniversary season--and a grand night for singing.